TheHistory of Bihar is one of the most varied in India. Bihar consists of three distinct regions, each has its own distinct history and culture. They areMagadha,Mithila andBhojpur.[1]Chirand, on the northern bank of theGanga River, inSaran district, has an archaeological record dating from theNeolithic age (c. 2500 – 1345 BC).[2][3] Regions of Bihar—such as Magadha, Mithila andAnga—are mentioned in religious texts and epics of ancient India.Mithila is believed to be the centre of Indian power in the LaterVedic period (c. 1100 – 500 BC). Mithila first gained prominence after the establishment of the ancientVideha Kingdom.[4] The kings of the Videha were calledJanakas. A daughter of one of the Janaks of Mithila,Sita, is mentioned as consort ofLord Rama in theHindu epicRamayana.[5] The kingdom later became incorporated into theVajjika League which had its capital in the city ofVaishali, which is also in Mithila.[6]
Magadha was the centre of Indian power, learning and culture for about a thousand years. One of India's greatest empires, theMaurya Empire, as well as two majorpacifist religions,Buddhism andJainism, arose from the region that is now Bihar.[7] Empires of the Magadha region, most notably the Maurya unified large parts of theIndian subcontinent under their rule.[8] Their capitalPataliputra, adjacent to modern-dayPatna, was an important political, military and economic centre of Indian civilisation during the ancient and classical periods of Indian history. Many ancientIndian texts, aside from religious epics, were written in ancient Bihar. The playAbhijñānaśākuntala being the most prominent.
The present-day region of Bihar overlaps with several pre-Mauryan kingdoms and republics, including Magadha, Anga and the Vajjika League ofMithila. The latter was one of the world's earliest known republics and had existed in the region since before the birth ofMahavira (c. 599 BC).[9][10]
ThePala Empire also made their capital at Pataliputra once duringDevapala's rule. After the Pala period, Bihar came under the control of various kingdoms. TheKarnat dynasty came into power in the Mithila region in the 11th century and they were succeeded by theOiniwar dynasty in the 14th century. Aside from Mithila, there were other small kingdoms in medieval Bihar. The area around Bodh Gaya and much of Magadha came under the BuddhistPithipatis of Bodh Gaya. TheKhayaravala dynasty were present in the southwestern portions of the state until the 13th century.[11] For much of the 13th and 14th centuries, parts of Western Bihar were under the control of theJaunpur Sultanate. These kingdoms were eventually supplanted by the Delhi Sultanate who in turn were replaced by theSur Empire. After the fall of the Suri dynasty in 1556, Bihar came under theMughal Empire and later was the staging post for the British colonialBengal Presidency from the 1750s and up to the war of 1857–58. On 22 March 1912, Bihar was carved out as a separate province in theBritish Indian Empire. Since 1947 independence, Bihar has been an original state of the Indian Union.[12]
The earliest proof of human activity in Bihar isMesolithic habitational remains atMunger.
Prehistoricrock paintings have been discovered in the hills ofKaimur,Nawada andJamui. It was the first time that aNeolithic settlement was discovered in the thick of thealluvium, over the bank of theGanges atChirand.[13] The rock paintings depict a prehistoric lifestyle and natural environment. They depict the Sun, the Moon, stars, animals, plants, trees, and rivers, and it is speculated that they represent love for nature. The paintings also highlight the daily life of the early humans in Bihar, including activities like hunting, running, dancing and walking.[14] The rock paintings in Bihar are not only identical to those in central andsouthern India but are also akin to those inEurope andAfrica. The rock paintings of Spain'sAlta Mira and France'sLascaux are almost identical to those found in Bihar.[15]
In 2017 bricks dated to the matureHarappan period was discovered from the outskirts of the ancient city ofVaishali.[16][17] Any in-depth research which may establish definite links betweenIndus Valley Civilization and Bihar is yet to be conducted. A round seal excavated from Vaishali dated 200 BC-200 AD has three inscribed letters which according toIndus Valley Civilization scholarIravatham Mahadevan represents formulas inscribed on the Indus seals and dates it to the earliest layers of excavation i-e 1100 BC.[18][19]
Kikata was an ancient kingdom in what is now India, mentioned in theVedas. Some scholars have believed that they were the forefathers ofMagadhas because Kikata is used as a synonym for Magadha in the later texts.[20] It probably lay to the south of Magadha Kingdom in a hilly landscape.[21] A section in theRigveda (RV 3.53.14) refers to theKīkaṭa 's (Sanskrit:कीकट), a tribe which most scholars have placed in present-day southwestern Bihar (Magadha) such as Weber and Zimmer[22] while some scholars such as Oldenburg and Hillebrandt dispute that. According toPuranic literature Kikata is placed nearGaya. It is described as extending from Caran-adri to Gridharakuta (vulture peak),Rajgir. Some scholar such as A. N. Chandra places Kikata in a hilly part of the Indus Valley based on the argument that countries between Magadh and the Indus Valley are not mentioned such as Kuru, Kosala etc. Kikatas were said to be Anarya or non-vedic people who didn't practice Vedic rituals like soma, According toSayana, Kikatas didn't perform worship, were infidels andnastikas. The leader of Kikatas has been called Pramaganda, a usurer.[23][24] It is unclear whether Kikatas were already present in Magadh during the Rigvedic period or they migrated there later.[25] Like Rigveda attributes of Kikatas, Atharvaveda also speaks about southeastern tribes like Magadhas and Angas as hostile tribe who lived on the borders of Brahmanical India.[26]Bhagvata Purana mentions about the birth of Buddha among Kikatas.[27]
Some scholars have placed theKīkaṭa kingdom, mentioned in theRigveda, inBihar (Magadha) because Kikata is used as a synonym for Magadha in the later texts;[22] however, according toMichael Witzel, Kīkaṭa was situated south ofKurukshetra in eastern Rajasthan or western Madhya Pradesh.[28] The placement in Bihar is also challenged by historical geographers Mithila Sharan Pandey (who argues they must have been nearWestern Uttar Pradesh),[29] and O.P. Bharadwaj (who places them near theSarasvati River),[30] and historianRam Sharan Sharma, who believes they were probably in Haryana.[31]
Urbanization in the Gangetic plains began with the appearance ofNorthern black polished ware period and archaeologists trace the origin of this pottery inMagadh region of Bihar. The oldest dated site of NBWP is in Juafardih,Nalanda, which is carbon dated to 1200 BC.[32]
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Videha is mentioned in both theRamayana and the Mahabharata as comprising parts of Bihar and extending into small parts ofNepal. The Hindu goddessSita is described as the princess of Videha, daughter of RajaJanak. The capital of Videha is believed to be eitherJanakpur (in Present-day Nepal),[33][full citation needed] or Baliraajgadh (in Present-dayMadhubani district, Bihar, India).[34][35]
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Some sources say thatAnga tribe was not Vedic, it was captured by theVedicAryans and according to some legends, Anga was the firstVedic king of Anga kingdom which justifies the naming of the kingdom. TheAnga tribe is believed to have been very powerful in the earlyvedic period. However, with the emergence of the kingdom ofMagadha andVaishali,Anga lost its importance.Karna, a friend ofDuryodhana, was the king ofAnga.
TheMagadha was established by a semi-mythical kingJarasandha, who thePuranas state was a king of theBrihadrathas dynasty and one of the descendants ofKing Puru. Jarasandha appears in theMahabharatha as the "Magadhan Emperor who rules all India" and meets with an unceremonious ending. Jarasandha was the greatest among them during epic times. His capital,Rajagriha orRajgir, is now a modern hill resort in Bihar. Jarasandha's continuous assault on theYadava kingdom ofSurasena resulted in their withdrawal from central India to western India. Jarasandha was a threat not only to the Yadavas but also to theKurus. PandavaBhima killed him in a mace dual aided by the intelligence ofVasudeva Krishna.
Thus,Yudhishthira, the Pandava King, could complete his campaign of bringing the whole of India into his empire. Jarasandha had friendly relations withChedi kingShishupala,Kuru kingDuryodhana andAnga kingKarna. His descendants, according to theVayu Purana, ruled Magadha for 1000 years followed by thePradyota dynasty, which ruled for 138 years from 799 to 684 BC[contradictory]. However, there is insufficient evidence to prove the historicity of this claim. These rulers are nonetheless mentioned in the Hindu, Buddhist, and Jain texts.Palaka, the son of the Avanti king Pradyota, conqueredKaushambi, increasing the kingdom's power.
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In the later Vedic Age, a number of small kingdoms or city-states, dominatedMagadha. Many of these states have been mentioned in Buddhist andJaina literature as far back as 1000 BC. By 500 BC, sixteen monarchies and 'republics' known as theMahajanapadas –Kasi,Kosala,Anga, Magadha,Vajji (or Vriji),Malla,Chedi,Vatsa (or Vamsa),Kuru,Panchala,Matsya (or Maccha),Surasena,Assaka,Avanti,Gandhara andKamboja – stretched across theIndo-Gangetic plains from modern-day Afghanistan to Bengal and Maharashtra.Vajji covered the modernNorth Bihar,Magadha covered South-western Bihar whileAnga covered South-eastern Bihar. Many of the sixteen kingdoms had coalesced to four major ones by 500/400 BC, that is by the time ofSiddhartha Gautama. These four were Vatsa, Avanti, Kosala and Magadha.[36] In 537 BC, Siddhartha Gautama attained the state ofenlightenment inBodh Gaya, Bihar. Around the same time,Mahavira who was born in a place called Kundalagrama in the ancient kingdom of Kundalpur in [vaishli] in modern-day Bihar. He was the 24thJainTirthankara, propagated a similar theology, that was to later become Jainism.[37] However, Jain orthodoxy believes it predates all known time. TheVedas are believed to have documented a few Jain Tirthankaras and an ascetic order similar to the sramana movement.[38] The Buddha's teachings and Jainism had doctrines inclined toward asceticism and were preached inPrakrit, which helped them gain acceptance amongst the masses. They have profoundly influenced practices that Hinduism and Indian spiritual orders are associated with namely,vegetarianism, prohibition of animal slaughter andahimsa (non-violence).
While the geographic impact of Jainism was limited to India, Buddhist nuns and monks eventually spread the teachings ofBuddha toCentral Asia,East Asia,Tibet,Sri Lanka and Southeast Asia.Nalanda University andVikramshila University one of the oldest residential universities were established in Bihar during this period.
According to both Buddhist texts and Jain texts, one of Pradyota tradition was that the King's son would kill his father to become the successor. During this time, it was reported that there were high crimes in Magadha. The people rose up and electedShishunaga to become the new king, who destroyed the power of the Pradyotas and created theShishunaga dynasty.Shishunaga (also called KingSisunaka) was the founder of a dynasty collectively called theShishunaga dynasty. He established theMagadha empire (in 684 BC). Due in part to this bloody dynastic feuding, it is thought that a civil revolt led to the emergence of the Shishunaga dynasty. This empire, with its original capital inRajgriha, later shifted toPataliputra (both currently in the Indian state of Bihar). The Shishunaga dynasty was one of the largest empires of theIndian subcontinent.
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The Hariyanka dynasty kingBimbisara was responsible for expanding the boundaries of his kingdom through matrimonial alliances and conquest.[39][40] The land ofKosala fell to Magadha in this way. Estimates place the territory ruled by this early dynasty at 300 leagues in diameter and encompassing 80,000 small settlements.Bimbisara is contemporary with the Buddha, and is recorded as a lay disciple. Bimbisara (543–493 BC) was imprisoned and killed by his son who became his successor,Ajatashatru (491–461 BC), under whose rule, the dynasty reached its largest extent.
Licchavi was an ancient—before the birth ofMahavira—republic in what is now the Bihar state of India.[10]Vaishali was the capital of Licchavi and theVajjika League. TheMahavamsa tells that a courtesan in that city,Ambapali, was famous for her beauty, and helped in large measure in making the city prosperous.[41]
Ajatashatru went to war with the Licchavi several times. Ajatashatru is thought to have ruled from 551 BC to 519 BC and moved the capital of the Magadha kingdom fromRajagriha toPataliputra.[42] TheMahavamsa tells that Udayabhadra eventually succeeded his father, Ajatashatru, and that under him Pataliputra became the largest city in the world. He is thought to have ruled for sixteen years. The kingdom had a particularly bloody succession. Anuruddha eventually succeeded Udaybhadra through assassination, and his son Munda succeeded him in the same fashion, as his sonNagadasaka.[43][44]
This dynasty lasted until 424 BC when it was overthrown by theNanda dynasty. This period saw the development in Magadha of two of India's major religions.Gautama Buddha in the 6th or 5th century BC was the founder of Buddhism, which later spread to East Asia andSoutheast Asia, whileMahavira revived and propagated the ancientsramanic religion of Jainism.
TheNanda dynasty was established by an illegitimate son of KingMahanandin from the previousShishunaga dynasty. TheNanda dynasty ruled Magadha during the 5th and 4th centuries BC. At its greatest extent, the Nanda Empire extended fromBurma in the east,Balochistan in the west and probably as far south asKarnataka.[45]Mahapadma Nanda of the Nanda dynasty, has been described as the destroyer of all theKshatriyas. He defeated theIkshvaku dynasty, as well as thePanchalas,Kasis,Haihayas,Kalingas,Asmakas,Kurus, Maithilas,Surasenas and the Vitihotras. He expanded his territory to the south ofDeccan.Mahapadma Nanda died at the age of 88 and, therefore, he ruled during most of the period of this dynasty, which lasted 100 years.
In 321 BC, exiled generalChandragupta Maurya, with the help ofChanakya, founded theMaurya dynasty after overthrowing the reigning Nanda kingDhana Nanda to establish theMaurya Empire. The Maurya Empire (322–185 BC), ruled by theMauryan dynasty, was geographically extensive, powerful and a political-military empire inancient India. During this time, most of the subcontinent was united under a single government for the first time. The exceptions were present-dayTamil Nadu andKerala (which was aTamil kingdom at that time). The empire had its capital city atPataliputra (near modernPatna). The Mauryan empire under Chandragupta Maurya would not only conquer most of the Indian subcontinent, defeating and conquering thesatraps left byAlexander the Great but also push its boundaries intoPersia and Central Asia, conquering theGandhara region. Chandragupta Maurya then defeated an invasion led bySeleucus I, a Greek general from Alexander's army. Chandragupta Maurya's minister,Kautilya Chanakya, wrote theArthashastra, a treatise on economics, politics, foreign affairs, administration, military arts, war and religion.
Chandragupta Maurya was succeeded by his son,Bindusara, who expanded the kingdom over most of present-day India, other than the extreme south and east. At its greatest extent, the Empire stretched to the north along the natural boundaries of theHimalayas, and to the east stretching into what is nowAssam. To the west, it reached beyond modern Pakistan, annexingBalochistan and much of what is nowAfghanistan. The Empire was extended into India's central and southern regions by the emperors Chandragupta andBindusara, but it excluded the republic of Kalinga.
The Maurya Empire was inherited byBindusara's son,Ashoka. Ashoka initially sought to expand his kingdom but in the aftermath of the carnage caused during the invasion of Kalinga, he renounced bloodshed and pursued a policy of non-violence orahimsa after converting to Buddhism. Following the conquest of Kalinga, Ashoka ended the military expansion of the empire and led the empire through more than 40 years of relative peace, harmony and prosperity. Ashoka's response to the Kalinga War is recorded in theEdicts of Ashoka,[46] one of the oldest preserved historical documents of the Indian subcontinent.[47][48][49]
According to Rock Edicts of Ashoka:
"Beloved-of-the-Gods [Ashoka], King Priyadarsi, conquered the Kalingas eight years after his coronation. 150000 were deported, 100000 were killed and many more died (from other causes). After the Kalingas had been conquered, Beloved-of-the-Gods came to feel a strong inclination towards the Dhamma, a love for the Dhamma and instruction in Dhamma. Now Beloved-of-the-Gods feels deep remorse for having conquered the Kalingas."
— Ashoka,S. Dhammika,The Edicts of King Ashoka, Kandy, Buddhist Publications Society (1994)ISBN 955-24-0104-6
The Mauryan Empire under Ashoka was responsible for the proliferation of Buddhist ideals across the whole of East Asia and South-East Asia. Under Ashoka, India was a prosperous and stable empire of great economic and military power whose political influence and trade extended across Asia and into Europe. Chandragupta Maurya's embrace of Jainism increased social and religious renewal and reform across his society, while Ashoka embraced Buddhism. Ashoka sponsored the spreading of Buddhist ideals into Sri Lanka and South-East Asia. TheLion Capital of Ashoka atSarnath, is theemblem of India. Archaeologically, the period of Mauryan rule in South Asia falls into the era ofNorthern Black Polished Ware (NBPW). TheArthashastra, the Edicts of Ashoka andAshokavadana are primary sources of written records of the Mauryan times.
Ashoka was followed for 50 years by a succession of weaker kings.Brihadrata, the last ruler of the Mauryan dynasty, held territories that had shrunk considerably from the time of emperor Ashoka, although he still upheld the Buddhist faith.
TheShunga dynasty was established in 185 BCE, about fifty years after the Ashoka's death, when the king Brihadratha, the last of the Mauryan rulers, was assassinated by the then commander-in-chief of theMauryanarmed forces,Pushyamitra Shunga.[51]
Pushyamitra Shunga was a Brahmin who then took over the throne and established the Shunga dynasty.Buddhist records such as the Ashokavadana write that the assassination of Brihadrata and the rise of the Shunga empire led to a wave ofpersecution of Buddhists,[52] and a resurgence ofHinduism. According toJohn Marshall,[53] Pushyamitra Shunga may have been the main author of the persecutions, although later Shunga kingsseem to have been more supportive of Buddhism. Other historians, such asEtienne Lamotte[54] andRomila Thapar,[55] partially support this view.
TheGupta dynasty ruled from around 240 to 579 CE. The dynasty was established byGupta, succeeded byGhatotkacha (c. 280–319) AD, had a son namedChandra Gupta I (Not to be confused withChandragupta Maurya (340–293 BC), founder of the Mauryan Empire). In a breakthrough deal, Chandra Gupta I was married to a woman from Lichchhavi—the main power in Magadha.
Samudragupta succeeded Chandra Gupta I in 335, and ruled for about 45 years, until he died in 380. He attacked the kingdoms of Shichchhatra, Padmavati,Malwas, theYaudheyas, theArjunayanas, theMaduras and theAbhiras, and merged them in his kingdom. By his death in 380, he had incorporated over twenty kingdoms into his realm, his rule extended from the Himalayas to the riverNarmada and from theBrahmaputra to theYamuna. He gave himself the titlesKing of Kings andWorld Monarch. He is considered theNapoleon of India. Chandra Gupta I performedAshwamedha Yajna to underline the importance of his conquest.
Chandra Gupta II, the Sun of Power (Vikramaditya), ruled from 380 until 413. Only marginally less successful than his father, Chandra Gupta II expanded his realm westwards, defeating theSakaWestern Kshatrapas ofMalwa,Gujarat andSaurashtra in a campaign lasting until 409. Chandragupta II was succeeded by his sonKumaragupta I. Known as theMahendraditya, he ruled until 455. Towards the end of his reign a tribe in the Narmada valley, thePushyamitras, rose in power to threaten the empire.
Skandagupta is generally considered the last of the great rulers.[56] He defeated the Pushyamitra threat, but then was faced with invadingHephthalites orHuna, from the northwest. He repulsed aHuna attack c. 477.Skandagupta died in 487 and was succeeded by his sonNarasimhaguptaBaladitya.
The Gupta Empire was one of the largest political and military empires inancient India. TheGupta period is referred to as the Classical Age of India by most historians. The time of the Gupta Empire was an "Indian Golden Age" in Indianscience, technology,engineering,art,dialectic,literature,logic,mathematics,astronomy,religion andphilosophy.[57]
The difference between the Gupta Empire's and Mauryan Empire's administration was that in the Mauryan administration power was centralised but in the Gupta administration power was more decentralised. The empire was divided into provinces and the provinces were further divided into districts. Villages were the smallest units. The kingdom coveredGujarat,North-East India, south-eastern Pakistan,Odisha, northernMadhya Pradesh and eastern India with capital atPataliputra, modernPatna. All forms of worship were carried out inSanskrit.
Rapid strides were made inastronomy during this period.Aryabhata andVarahamihira were two great astronomers andmathematicians. Aryabhata stated that the Earth moved around the Sun and rotated on its axis. Aryabhata, who is believed to be the first to come up with the concept ofzero, postulated the theory thatthe Earth moves round the Sun, and studied solar and lunareclipses. Aryabhata's most famous work wasAryabhatiya.Varahamihira's most important contributions are the encyclopaedicBrihat-Samhita andPancha-Siddhantika (Pañcasiddhāntikā). Metallurgy also made rapid strides. The proof can be seen in the Iron Pillar ofVaishali[58] and nearMehrauli on the outskirts ofDelhi, which was brought from Bihar.[59]
This period is also very rich inSanskrit literature. The material sources of this age wereKalidasa's works.Raghuvamsa,Malavikagnimitram,Meghadūta,Abhijñānaśākuntala andKumārasambhava,Mṛcchakatika byShudraka,Panchatantra byVishnu Sharma,Kama Sutra (the principles of pleasure) and 13 plays byBhasa were also written in this period.
In medicine, the Guptas were notable for their establishment and patronage of free hospitals. Although progress in physiology and biology was hindered by religious injunctions against contact with dead bodies, which discouraged dissection and anatomy, Indian physicians excelled in pharmacopoeia, caesarean section, bone setting, and skin grafting. Indeed, Hindu medical advances were soon adopted in theArab and Western worlds.Ayurveda was the main medical system.
According to some historian's work,
The Gupta Empire is considered by many scholars to be the "classical age" of Hindu and Buddhist art and literature. The Rulers of the Gupta Empire were strong supporters of developments in the arts, architecture, science, and literature. The Gupta Empire circulated a large number of gold coins, called dinars, with their inscriptions. The Gupta Dynasty also left behind an effective administrative system. During times of peace, the Gupta Empire system was decentralised, with only taxation flowing to the capital at Pataliputra. During times of war, however, the government realigned and fought its invaders. The system was soon extinguished in fighting off the Hunnic Invasions.[60][61]
The Later Gupta dynasty ruled theMagadha region in eastern India between the 6th and 7th centuries AD. The Later Guptas succeeded theimperial Guptas as the rulers of Magadha, but there is no evidence connecting the two dynasties; these appear to be two distinct families.[62] The Later Guptas are so-called because the names of their rulers ended with the suffix "-gupta", which they might have adopted to portray themselves as the legitimate successors of the imperial Guptas.[63]
ThePala Empire was a Buddhist dynasty that ruled from theBengal region of the Indian subcontinent. The namePala (ModernBengali:পালpal) meansprotector and was used as an ending to the names of all Pala monarchs. The Palas were followers of theMahayana andTantric schools of Buddhism.Gopala was the first ruler of the dynasty. He came topower in 750 inGaur by ademocraticelection. This event is recognised as one of the firstdemocratic elections inSouth Asia since the time of theMahā Janapadas. He reigned from 750 to 770 and consolidated his position by extending his control over all ofBengal as well as parts ofBihar. The Buddhistdynasty lasted for four centuries (750–1120 CE).
The empire reached its peak underDharmapala andDevapala. Dharmapala extended the empire into the northern parts of theIndian Subcontinent. This triggered once again the power struggle for the control of the subcontinent. Devapala, successor of Dharmapala, expanded the empire to cover much ofSouth Asia and beyond. His empire stretched fromAssam andUtkala in the east,Kamboja (modern-dayAfghanistan) in the north-west andDeccan in the south. According to Pala copperplate inscription, Devapala exterminated the Utkalas, conquered the Pragjyotisha (Assam), shattered the pride of theHuna, and humbled the lords ofGurjara-Pratiharas,Gurjara and theDravidas.
The Palas created many temples and works of art as well as supported the Universities ofNalanda andVikramashila. BothNalanda University andVikramshila University reached their peak under the Palas. The universities received an influx of students from many parts of the world. Bihar and Bengal were invaded by the south Indian EmperorRajendra Chola I of theChola dynasty in the 11th century.[64][65] ThePala Empire eventually disintegrated in the 12th century under the attack of theSena dynasty.Pala Empire was the last empire ofmiddle kingdoms whose capital was once inPataliputra (modernPatna) under Devapala's rule.
During the medieval period, Bihar was controlled by various small kingdoms and principalities. Bihar also experienced its first encounter with foreign aggression from the West and Muslim armies came to approach its border.[67] With the advent of foreign aggression and eventual foreign subjugation of India, Bihar passed through very uncertain times during the medieval period.Muhammad of Ghor attacked this region of the Indian subcontinent many times.Muhammad of Ghor's armies destroyed many Buddhist structures, including the great Nalanda University.[68][11]
The Buddhism of Magadha was finally swept away by the Islamic invasion underMuhammad Bin Bakhtiar Khilji, one ofQutb-ud-Din's generals destroyed monasteries fortified by theSena armies, during which many of theviharas and the famed universities ofNalanda andVikramshila were destroyed, and thousands of Buddhist monks were massacred in the 12th century.[69][70][71][72][73][11][excessive citations]
However, North Bihar/Mithila maintained its autonomy for longer than the rest of Bihar and was under the control of native dynasties until at least the sixteenth century.[citation needed]
In 1097 AD, the Karnat dynasty of Mithila emerged on the Bihar/Nepal border area and maintained capitals inDarbhanga andSimraongadh. The dynasty was established byNanyadeva, a military commander of Karnataka origin. Under this dynasty, theMaithili language started to develop with the first piece of Maithili literature, theVarna Ratnakara being produced in the 14th century by Jyotirishwar Thakur. The Karnats also carried out raids intoNepal. They fell in 1324 following the invasion ofGhiyasuddin Tughlaq.[74][11]
The Oiniwar dynasty emerged after the fall of the Karnats and ruled North Bihar as vassals of theDelhi Sultanate. Under the king, Shiva Singh, they declared independence ,even repulsing invasions from the neighboringJaunpur Sultanate andBengal sultanate.[75]
They were contemporaries of theJaunpur Sultanate.[77]
During the late Pala period, the area of Magadha was ruled by Buddhist kings with the title of Pīṭhīpati. They were patrons of theMahabodhi Temple and referred to themselves asmagadhādipati (rulers of Magadha). They maintained a presence in the region until at least the 13th century.[78][11]
After the fall of the Pala empire, theCheros established a tribal polity that ruled some parts of southern Bihar extending into modern-dayJharkhand from the 12th century to the 16th century untilMughal rule after which they were reduced to chieftains/Zamindars.[79]
The Khayaravalas were the ruling dynasty of theSon river valley in South Bihar and Jharkhand during the 11th to 13th centuries. Notable kings of this dynasty includePratapdhavala andShri Pratapa. They were also involved in the construction ofRohtasgarh fort.[80]
The Jaunpur Sultanate emerged in 1394 and controlled much of Western Bihar. Many coin hoards and inscriptions from the Jaunpur period have been found in Bihar.[81]
Medieval Bihar saw a period of glory lasting about six years during the rule ofSher Shah Suri, who hailed fromSasaram.Sher Shah Suri built the longest road of the Indian subcontinent, theGrand Trunk Road, which started atCalcutta (Bengal) and ended atPeshawar, now Pakistan. The economic reforms carried out by Sher Shah, such as the introduction of the Rupee and Custom Duties, are still used in the Republic of India. He revived the city of Patna, where he built his headquarters.[82][83]
Hemu, the Hindu Emperor, the son of a food seller, and himself a vendor ofsaltpetre atRewari,[84] rose to become Chief of Army andPrime Minister[85][86] under the command ofAdil Shah Suri of theSuri Dynasty. He had won 22 battles against the Afghans, fromPunjab toBengal and had defeated Akbar's forces twice, atAgra and Delhi in 1556,[87] before succeeding to the throne of Delhi and establishing a 'Hindu Raj' inNorth India, albeit for a short duration, fromPurana Quila in Delhi. He was killed in theSecond Battle of Panipat.
During the period of Islamic rule, much of Bihar was under the sway of localZamindars or chieftains who maintained their armies and territories. These chieftains retained much of their power until the arrival of the British East India Company.[88]
In 1576, after theBattle of Tukaroi, Mughal EmperorAkbar conqueredBengal Sultanate and added it to his empire domain. He divided Bihar and Bengal each into one of his original twelvesubahs (imperial top-level provinces;Bihar Subah with its seat atPatna) and the region passed through uneventful provincial rule during much of this period. Bihar was left under Mughal control until theBattle of Plassey in 1757.[89]
Bihar passed into the control ofNawabs of Bengal under British suzerainty.
PrinceAzim-us-Shan, the grandson ofAurangzeb was appointed as the governor of Bihar in 1703.[90] Azim-us-Shan renamed Pataliputra or Patna asAzimabad, in 1704.[91][92]
After theBattle of Buxar, 1764, which was fought inBuxar, hardly 115 km from Patna, the Mughals as well as theNawabs of Bengal lost effective control over the territories then constituting the province of Bengal, which currently comprisesBangladesh and the Indianstates ofWest Bengal,Bihar,Jharkhand,Odisha. TheBritish East India Company was accorded thediwani rights, that is, the right to administer the collection and management of revenues of the province of Bengal, and parts ofOudh, currently comprising a large part ofUttar Pradesh. The Diwani rights were legally granted byShah Alam, who was then the sovereign Mughal emperor of India. During the rule of theBritish East India Company in Bihar, Patna emerged as one of the most important commercial and trading centres of eastern India, preceded only byKolkata.[citation needed]
The first seeds of resentment against British rule emerged whenMaharajaFateh Bahadur Sahi, the chieftain of Huseypur inSaran district, initiated a struggle against the East India Company in 1767. His revolt escalated in 1781 when various other zamindars and chiefs in South Bihar began to join his revolt includingRaja Narain Singh andAkbar Ali.[93] The British were able to successfully put down the revolt.
Babu Kunwar Singh of Jagdishpur and his army, as well as countless other persons from Bihar, contributed to theIndia's First War of Independence (1857), also called theSepoy Mutiny by some historians.Babu Kunwar Singh (1777–1858) one of the leaders of the Indian uprising of 1857 belonged[94] to a royalRajput house ofJagdispur, currently a part ofBhojpur district of Bihar. By that timeBihar had many feudal estates orzamindars. Most notablyTekari Raj,Raj Darbhanga,Bettiah Raj,Hathwa Raj,Kharagpur Raj,Banaili Estate and theSurajpura Raj. At the age of 80 years, during India's First War of Independence, he actively led a select band of armed soldiers against the troops under the command of the East India Company and also recorded victories in many battles.[95]
Under theBritish Raj, Bihar particularly Patna gradually started to attain its lost glory and emerged as an important and strategic centre of learning and trade in India. From this point, Bihar remained a part of theBengal Presidency of the British Raj until 1912, when the province ofBihar and Orissa was carved out as a separate province. When the Bengal Presidency was partitioned in 1912 to carve out a separate province, Patna was made the capital of the new province. The city limits were stretched westwards to accommodate the administrative base, and the township ofBankipore took shape along the Bailey Road (originally spelt as Bayley Road, after the first Lt. Governor,Charles Stuart Bayley). This area was called theNew Capital Area. The houses of the English residents were all at the west end at Bankipore. The greater part of the English residences were on the banks of the river, many of them being on the northern side of an open square, which formed the parade ground, and racecourse (presentGandhi Maidan). There was also theGolghar a wondrous bell-shaped building, one hundred feet high, with a winding outer staircase leading to the top, and a small entrance door at the base, which was intended for a granary, to be filled when there was the expectation of famine. It was initially considered to be both politically and materially impracticable.
To this day, locals call the old area the City whereas the new area is called the New Capital Area. ThePatna Secretariat with its imposing clock tower and thePatna High Court are two imposing landmarks of this era of development. Credit for designing the massive and majestic buildings of colonial Patna goes to the architect, I. F. Munnings. By 1916–1917, most of the buildings were ready for occupation. These buildings reflect eitherIndo-Saracenic influence (likePatna Museum and the state Assembly), or overtRenaissance influence like the Raj Bhawan and the High Court. Some buildings, like the General Post Office (GPO) and the Old Secretariat, bear pseudo-Renaissance influence. Some say the experience gained in building the new capital area of Patna proved very useful in building the imperial capital ofNew Delhi.
The British built several educational institutions in Patna likePatna College,Patna Science College,Bihar College of Engineering,Prince of Wales Medical College and theBihar Veterinary College. With government patronage, the Biharis quickly seized the opportunity to make these centres flourish quickly and attain renown. In 1935, certain portions of Bihar were reorganised into the separate province ofOrissa. Patna continued as the capital of Bihar province under the British Raj.[citation needed]
Bihar played a major role in theIndian independence struggle. Most notable were theChamparan movement against the Indigo plantation and theQuit India Movement of 1942. Leaders likeChandradeo Prasad Verma,[96]Ajit Kumar Mehta,[97]Swami Sahajanand Saraswati,[98] ShaheedBaikuntha Shukla,Sri Krishna Sinha,Anugrah Narayan Sinha, Mulana Mazharul Haque,LoknayakJayaprakash Narayan,Basawon Singh (Sinha),Yogendra Shukla,Sheel Bhadra Yajee,Pandit Yamuna Karjee,Dr. Maghfoor Ahmad Ajazi and many others who worked for India's independence and worked to lift up the underprivileged masses.Khudiram Bose, Upendra Narayan Jha "Azad" andPrafulla Chaki were also active in revolutionary movement in Bihar.
After his return from South Africa, it was from Bihar thatMahatma Gandhi launched his pioneering civil-disobedience movement,Champaran Satyagraha.[99]Raj Kumar Shukla drew Mahatma Gandhi's attention to the exploitation of the peasants by the Europeanindigo planters. Champaran Satyagraha received the spontaneous support from many Biharis, includingBrajkishore Prasad,Rajendra Prasad (who became the firstPresident of India) andAnugrah Narayan Sinha (who became the firstDeputy Chief Minister andFinance Minister of Bihar).[100]
In India's struggle for independence, the Champaran Satyagraha marks a very important stage. Raj Kumar Shukla drew the attention ofMahatma Gandhi, who had just returned from South Africa, to the plight of the peasants suffering under an oppressive system established by European indigo planters. Besides other excesses, they were forced to cultivate indigo on 3/20 part of their holding and sell it to the planters at prices fixed by the planters. This marked Gandhi's entry into India's independence movement. On arrival at the district headquarters inMotihari, Gandhi and his team of lawyers—Dr.Rajendra Prasad, Dr. Anugrah Narayan Sinha, Brajkishore Prasad and Ram Navami Prasad, whom he had handpicked to participate in thesatyagraha—were ordered to leave by the next available train. They refused to do this, and Gandhi was arrested. He was released and the ban order was withdrawn in the face of a "Satyagraha" threat. Gandhi conducted an open inquiry into the peasant's grievances. The Government had to appoint an inquiry committee with Gandhi as a member. This led to the abolition of the system.
Raj Kumar Shukla has been described by Gandhi in hisAtmakatha, as a man whose suffering gave him the strength to rise against the odds. In his letter to Gandhi he wrote "Respected Mahatma, You hear the stories of others everyday. Today please listen to my story.... I want to draw your attention to the promise made by you in theLucknow Congress that you would come to Champaran. The time has come for you to fulfill your promise. 1.9 million suffering people of Champaran are waiting to see you."
Gandhi reached Patna on 10 April 1917 and on 16 April he reachedMotihari accompanied byRaj Kumar Shukla. Under Gandhi's leadership the historic "Champaran Satyagraha" began. The contribution of Raj Kumar Shukla is reflected in the writings of Dr. Rajendra Prasad, the first President of India, Anugrah Narayan Sinha,Acharya Kriplani and Mahatma Gandhi. Raj Kumar Shukla maintained a diary in which he gave an account of his struggle against the atrocities of the indigo planters, atrocities so movingly depicted byDinabandhu Mitra inNil Darpan, a play that was translated byMichael Madhusudan Dutt. This movement by Mahatma Gandhi received the spontaneous support of a cross-section of people, including Dr.Rajendra Prasad, Bihar KesariSri Krishna Sinha, Dr. Anugrah Narayan Sinha and Brajkishore Prasad.
ShaheedBaikuntha Shukla was another nationalist from Bihar, who was hanged for murdering a government approver named Phanindrananth Ghosh. This led to the hanging ofBhagat Singh,Sukhdev andRajguru. Phanindranath Ghosh hitherto a key member of theRevolutionary Party had betrayed the cause by turning an approver and giving evidence, which led to his murder. Baikunth was commissioned to plan the murder of Ghosh. He carried out the killing successfully on 9 November 1932. He was arrested, tried, and convicted, and, on 14 May 1934, he was hanged in Gaya Central Jail.Karpoori Thakur also played an important role in the freedom struggle.[101]
In North and Central Bihar, a peasant movement was an important side effect of the independence movement. The Kisan Sabha movement started in Bihar under the leadership ofSwami Sahajanand Saraswati who in 1929 had formed theBihar Provincial Kisan Sabha (BPKS) to mobilise peasant grievances against thezamindari attacks their occupancy rights.[102] Gradually the peasant movement intensified and spread across the rest of India. All these radical developments on the peasant front culminated in the formation of theAll India Kisan Sabha (AIKS) at theLucknow session of theIndian National Congress in April 1936, withSwami Sahajanand Saraswati elected as its first President.[103] This movement aimed at overthrowing the feudal zamindari system instituted by theBritish. It was led bySwami Sahajanand Saraswati and his followersPandit Yamuna Karjee,Rahul Sankrityayan and others. Pandit Yamuna Karjee along with Rahul Sankrityayan and other Hindi literary figures started publishing aHindi weeklyHunkar from Bihar in 1940. Hunkar later became the mouthpiece of the peasant movement and the agrarian movement in Bihar and was instrumental in spreading the movement. The peasant movement later spread to other parts of the country and helped in digging out the British roots in the Indian society by overthrowing thezamindari system.
During the Quit India movement, inSaran district of Bihar, Chandrama Mahto received bullet injuries during a protest against the colonial authorities and was subsequently martyred on the same day. InShahabad district, Maharaj Koeri was wounded in police firing at Behea. Ramjas Koeri was arrested, and taken into confinement, he died in prison, presumably due to brutal assault by Police.[104] Noted revolutionaryChandradeo Prasad Verma was also arrested during Quit India movement, he underwent rigorous imprisonment for two years from 1943 to 1945. After his release from imprisonment, he restarted revolutionary activities once again and plotted a conspiracy to blast Bikram Airport inPatna.[96] InKhagaria district,Prabhu Narayan was shot by the colonial police white attempting to unfurl Indian flag during Quit India movement.[105]
Towards the end of 1946, between 30 October and 7 November, a massacre of Muslims in Bihar madePartition more likely. Begun as a reprisal for theNoakhali riot, it was difficult for authorities to deal with because it was spread out over a large number of scattered villages, and the number of casualties was impossible to establish accurately: "According to a subsequent statement in theBritish Parliament, the death-toll amounted to 5,000.The Statesman's estimate was between 7,500 and 10,000; theCongress party admitted to 2,000; Mr.Jinnah claimed about 30,000."[106]
The firstCabinet ofBihar was formed on 2 April 1946, consisting of two members, Dr.Sri Krishna Sinha as the firstChief Minister of Bihar and Dr. Anugrah Narayan Sinha asDeputy Chief Minister and Finance Minister of Bihar (also in charge of Labour, Health, Agriculture and Irrigation).[107][108][109] Other ministers were inducted later. The Cabinet served as the firstBihar Government after independence in 1947. In 1950,Dr. Rajendra Prasad from Bihar became the firstPresident of India.
TheIndian National Congress dominated the state for much of the decades after independence except for a brief period in the 1960s and 70s when some of the backward caste leaders were successful in forming a non-Congress government in the state.[110][111]Satish Prasad Singh was the firstOBC chief minister of the state for a very brief period, who succeededMahamaya Prasad Sinha.[112] In the later period, the upper-caste remained active in politics but the backward caste were gradually becoming vocal in political space. The lead was taken byUpper Backward Castes, who were the biggest beneficiaries of the land reform drive undertaken in the early decades of independence and were now becoming active in the politics of the state. A section of these upper-backwards also emulated the practices of erstwhileZamindars and committed atrocities against theDalits. TheNaxalite uprising in the state also forced the upper caste to sell off their most vulnerable holdings, which were most often bought by the peasants of these upper backward communities.[113][114] The naxal uprising in the state led to foundation of several caste-based private armies which perpetrated massacres of lower caste people on the charge of being the supporters of the Naxalites.Ranvir Sena,Bhumi Sena andKuer Sena were some of the most dreaded caste armies.[115] The Bhojpur region remained the hotspot of the Naxalite movement in the Bihar, whereMaster Jagdish lead the uprising against the landlords.[116] Some of the biggest massacres took place during this period in which both upper-caste and the Dalits remained the victims. TheUpper Backward Castes were in two front confrontations with both the Dalits as well as upper castes.[117][118]
The caste wars coincided with the rise of backward caste politics against upper-caste domination in Bihar and throughout North India after the implementation of the Mandal Commission report. The most numerous and powerful backward community were the Yadavs, and the 1990s saw the rise of theRashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) led byLalu Prasad Yadav. This party held the Yadav/Muslim vote bank, a combination also held by the Samajwadi party, its UP counterpart. This allowed the RJD to sweep to power throughout the 1990s. His platform was one of social justice, increasing reservations for lower castes. However critics of the era have claimed it was a 'Jungle raj.'[119][120]
In 1989, in the9th General election to theLok Sabha, theJanata Dal emerged as a serious challenge to theIndian National Congress party at thecentral level. The rise of Janata Dal also affected the state politics ofBihar which was dominated by theupper castes for long who were controlling the Congress firmly in the state, a charge disputed by some scholars. The Janata Dal was composed of three different wings which drew its strength from different classes of society. The first wing was under the leadership ofChandra Shekhar, who had reached out to the otherSocialists and also to one splinter group underMorarji Desai. The second faction consisted of some of the old congressmen includingArun Nehru and formerDefence MinisterVishwanath Pratap Singh. The third group drew its support from backward castes and middle peasantry, led byCharan Singh. Although Charan Singh was the leader of this faction, the actual leadership emerged after his death under the new generation of politicians likeLalu Prasad Yadav, who was a product of student politics of the 1970s.[121][110][111]
Yadav was appointed as the firstOBC president of the Patna University student union in 1967.[citation needed] In 1974, he was appointed as the head of the Bihar student agitation committee which led the protest against the Congress-led government of the state during theBihar Movement under the mentorship ofJay Prakash Narayan. According to Seyed Hossein Zarhani, throughout his leadership period at Patna University, his image was of a popular backward caste leader who fought against upper-caste dominance.[121]
In 1975, as an activist in the campaign againstIndira Gandhi, he was arrested and after the end ofNational Emergency, he was elected asMember of Parliament in 1977 fromChhapra constituency on the ticket ofJanata Party. In the 1980 and 1989 state assembly elections, Yadav was elected asMember of Legislative Assembly fromSonepur. He was the successor ofKarpoori Thakur as the leader of opposition inBihar Legislative Assembly who finally assumed the post ofChief Minister in 1990. Yadav's appointment as Chief Minister changed the socio-political profile of the state and in the coming years he emerged as the undisputed leader in Bihar who controlled the politics of the state earlier himself and later through his wife,Rabri Devi.[121]
Yadav followed the footsteps of his predecessors and Janta Dal under him indicated that it is the only party which is prepared to keep the backwards at the centre of the administration. Hence after assuming power, Lalu Yadav's government transferred 12 out of 13 Divisional Commissioners and 250 out of 324 Returning Officers in order to keep lower-caste people at the helm of all affairs at the local level. ManyOBC bureaucrats were brought to the main departments from the sidelines and were given key positions such as the strategic posts ofDistrict Magistrates and Deputy Divisional Commissioners to the extent that they became least equivalent to the upper-castes. Three years after Yadav assumed power, many upper-caste officials attained transfer to the centre to avoid the alleged humiliation and ill-treatment they suffered in Bihar. ThePanchayati Raj Bill and thePatna University and Bihar University amendment bill passed by the state legislature in 1993 also paved the way for the entry ofScheduled Castes,Scheduled Tribes andOBCs in the state services in bulk.[122] According toChristophe Jaffrelot:
Lalu Prasad Yadav has deliberately introduced a new style of politics, highlighting the rustic qualities of low castes of Bihar. For instance, he makes the point of speaking the Bhojpuri dialect or English with a strong Bhojpuri accent, to the horror of the upper classes. He was also adept at confronting them. One of his early slogans was,Bhurabal Hatao, (wipe outBhumihar,Brahmin,Rajput and Lala (Kayasth)). A few months after he became Chief Minister, he utilised his control of state media to describe the opposition to the Mandal as the conspiracy of the upper castes.[122]
"Ram Vilas Paswan was often seen with Mont Blanc pen, Cartier glasses and Rado prompting his critics to brand him a ‘five-starDalit’. But in his pockets of influence in Bihar, his whirling helicopter was enough to make people chant, “Dharti Gunje Aasman, Ram Vilas Paswan.” Paswan was among the most popular faces when the social churn began in post-Emergency Bihar. In 1983, he formed the Dalit Sena, on the lines of the Schedule Caste Federation of BR Ambedkar."
The Janata Dal had survived the splits in past when leaders like George Fernandes and Nitish Kumar defected to formSamata Party in 1994, but it remained a baseless party after the decision of Yadav to formRashtriya Janata Dal in 1997. The second split took place before theRabri Devi assuming power which resulted inJanata Dal having only two leaders of any consequence in it, namelySharad Yadav andRam Vilas Paswan. Paswan was regarded as the rising leader of Dalits and had the credit of winning his elections with unprecedented margins. His popularity reached the national level when he was awarded the post of Minister of Railways in theUnited Front government in 1996 and was subsequently made the leader ofLok Sabha. His outreach was witnessed in the westernUttar Pradesh too, when his followers organised an impressive rally at the behest of a newly floated organisation calledDalit Panthers.[124] Sharad Yadav was also a veteran socialist leader but without any massive support base. In the 1998 Parliamentary elections, the Samata Party and Janata Dal, which was in a much weaker position after the formation ofRJD ended up eating each other's vote base. This made Nitish Kumar merge both the parties to formJanata Dal (United).[125]
In1999 Lok Sabha elections, Rashtriya Janata Dal received a setback at the hand ofBJP+JD(U) combine. The new coalition emerged leading in 199 out of 324 assembly constituencies and it was widely believed that in the forthcoming election to Bihar state assembly elections, the Lalu-Rabri rule will come to an end. The RJD had fought the election in an alliance with the Congress but the coalition didn't work making state leadership of Congress believe that the maligned image of Lalu Prasad after his name was drawn in theFodder Scam had eroded his support base. Consequently, the Congress decided to fight the2000 assembly elections alone. The RJD had to be satiated with the communist parties as the coalition partners but the seat-sharing conundrum in the camp ofNDA made Nitish Kumar pull his Samta Party out of the Sharad Yadav and Ram Vilas Paswan faction of the Janata Dal. Differences also arose between the BJP and Nitish Kumar who later wanted to be projected as the Chief Minister of Bihar but the former was not in favour. Even Paswan also wanted to be aCM face. The Muslims and OBCs were too divided in their opinion. A section of Muslims, which included the poor communities like Pasmanda were of the view that Lalu only strengthened upper Muslims like Shaikh, Sayyid and Pathans and they were in search of new options.[126]
Yadav also alienated other dominant backward castes likeKoeri andKurmi since his projection as the saviour of Muslims. It is argued by Sanjay Kumar that the belief that, "the dominant OBCs like the twin caste of Koeri-Kurmi will ask for share in power if he (Yadav) seeks their support while the Muslims will remain satisfied with the protection during communal riots only" made Yadav neglect them. Moreover, the divisions in both camps made the political atmosphere in the state a charged one in which many parties were fighting against each other with no visible frontiers. JD(U) and BJP were fighting against each other on some of the seats and so was the Samta Party. The result was a setback for the BJP, which in media campaigns was emerging with a massive victory. RJD emerged as the single largest party and with the political maneuvere of Lalu Yadav, Rabri Devi was sworn in as the Chief Minister again. The media largely failed to gauge the ground-level polarisation in Bihar.[126] According to Sanjay Kumar:
there can be no doubt about one thing that the upper-caste media was always anti Lalu and it was either not aware of the ground level polarisation in the Bihar, or deliberately ignored it. If the election result did not appear as a setback for RJD, it was largely because of the bleak picture painted by the media. Against this background, RJD's defeat had appeared like a victory.[126]
Even after serving imprisonment in connection with the 1997 scam, Lalu seemed to relish his role as a lower-caste jester. He argued that corruption charges against him and his family were the conspiracy of the upper-caste bureaucracy and media elites threatened by the rise of peasant cultivator castes. In 2004, Lalu's RJD had outperformed other state-based parties by winning 26 Lok Sabha seats in Bihar. He was awarded the post ofUnion Railway minister but the rising aspirations of the extremely backward castes unleashed by him resulted in JD(U) and BJP-led coalition to defeat his party in2005 Bihar Assembly elections. Consequently, Nitish Kumar a leader of OBCKurmi caste was sworn in as the chief minister. During Lalu's time backward caste candidates came to dominate the Bihar assembly claiming half of the seats in it and it was the aspiration of this powerful social community which led to friction among the united backwards, leading to the rise of Nitish Kumar who made both social justice and development as his political theme.[127]
Thus, the 2005 Bihar assembly elections ended the 15 years of continuousRJD rule in the state, giving way toNDA led byNitish Kumar. Bihari migrant workers have faced violence and prejudice in many parts of India, likeMaharashtra,Punjab andAssam.[128][129][130]
To mark the separation of Bihar from Bengal on 22 March 1912, the completion of 100 years of existence is being celebrated in the name of Bihar Shatabadi Celebration Utsav.[131] There was apolitical crisis over post of the chief minister during February 2015.
![Vaishali was the capital of Vajjika League, believed to be the world's earliest republic.[10][132][133][134]](/mt/?noimg=&dark=on&url=http%3a%2f%2fwww.wikipedia.org%2fwiki%2fFile%3aAshoka_pillar_at_Vaishali%2c_Bihar%2c_India.jpg)
kikata rigveda.
Layers 13 the uppermost deposit of Period I, has provided a C14 date of 1354 BCE it may thus be seen that the C14 dates of Period I and II are consistent and justifiably indicate that the conventional date bracket for NBPW requires a fresh review at least for the sites in Magadh region.
Aryabhata himself (one of at least two mathematicians bearing that name) lived in the late 5th and the early 6th centuries atKusumapura (Pataliutra, a village near the city of Patna) and wrote a book calledAryabhatiya.
It is not so as the political party led the national movement and controlled the government for almost 40 years in Bihar after Independence, it would be over-exaggeration to state that the Congress Party is a party of the upper castes.
The victory of the Congress Party in 1972 arrested this trend. The political domination of the upper castes under the leadership of the Brahmans returned [...] The Coalition Government of five opposition parties in 1967 was led by Mahamaya Prasad Sinha, a Kayastha leader, who had newly formed a political party called the [...] Political power in Bihar was for long the privilege of the upper castes .
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